The future of the San Diego Padres is in jeopardy due to a lawsuit filed on Monday by Sheel Kamal Seidler, widow of the late team owner Peter Seidler.
The defendants, Peter’s brothers Bob and Matt Seidler, are expected to argue they fulfilled their fiduciary duties as trustees and claim Sheel is misinterpreting Peter’s intentions in ways that tarnish his legacy. Matt has already expressed some of these points in a public letter to fans.
This case revolves around conflicting accounts of meetings, discussions, and personal intentions, making witness testimony crucial. Potential witnesses may include MLB officials and Padres employees, including players, to shed light on who was involved in major decisions and Peter’s expressed wishes about his wife and brothers. Central to the dispute is whether Sheel was unlawfully prevented by her brothers-in-law from becoming the Padres’ control person, the individual MLB considers the team’s decision-maker.
Sheel’s lawsuit outlines her version of the Padres’ ownership structure after Peter’s death in 2023. Peter had established a trust naming Bob, Matt, and John as successor trustees, which includes the primary ownership stake in the Padres. A marital trust also exists for the benefit of Sheel and their three children. According to Sheel, both trusts were intended to prioritize her and their children during her lifetime. She even included a photo of a list, allegedly made by Peter, ranking the team’s future control person, with her name at the top, followed by their children.
Sheel accuses Bob and Matt of breaching their fiduciary duties by prioritizing their own interests over hers. She claims they failed to inform her of significant financial transactions and denied her the chance to succeed Peter as the control person. She asserts they blocked her nomination and instead ensured their eldest brother, John, became the control person, despite his lack of qualifications.
Matt Seidler, in a public letter, disputes Sheel’s account and argues that Peter’s estate planning provided clear instructions, placing trust-related decisions in the hands of his brothers. Matt emphasizes that Peter never mentioned Sheel as a potential control person and points to a 2020 document signed by Sheel, acknowledging she had no right to that role.
This legal battle is reminiscent of other family ownership disputes in professional sports, such as the Angelos family feud over the Baltimore Orioles. These conflicts are becoming more common as team valuations rise and the aging generation of owners passes their stakes to heirs. Supporting evidence, including emails and testimonies, will be vital to resolving the Seidler case. MLB’s involvement, though typically avoided in ownership disputes, may become unavoidable given Sheel’s allegations that the league’s processes were exploited to deny her control.
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